To be clear, both of these photos were taken before Jesse Williams’ powerful BET Awards speech. But they have resurfaced as discussion swirls about what role high-profile black men should take in advocating for black women. The first was taken just a few weeks ago, when Drake was vacationing in the Dominican Republic. The shirt says, “The hardest job in America is being a black woman.”
The second is from early 2014. The “I Met God, She’s Black” t-shirts were trending at that time, and some white celebrities sported them also.
The internet is divided on the significance of these gestures. On the popular gossip site, LipstickAlley, (where we first came across these images) commenters were torn on the significance of a world famous rapper sporting shirts like these.
Drake’s more recent dating history (Serena Williams, Rihanna) seems to suggest that he is attracted to or, at the very least, not intimidated by powerful black women. He alluded to this in his 2015 song Digital Dash;
“Just walked in with a girl that’s making triple what I’m making, what an entrance.”
That line could be about Williams, Rihanna or his long-time unrequited crush, Nicki Minaj.
But I don’t know many who would go so far to say that Drake is an advocate for black women’s issues, especially given that he is in a genre that repeatedly and mercilessly denigrates them.
Ladies, what do you think?